It is arguable that the toy industry is one of the most intensely competitive industries in the western world. Toy developers constantly explore new areas of toy development and produce a seemingly endless array of varied toys. In recent years, a great deal of development and design effort has also been directed to the development of packaging which will provide an advantage for the toy manufacturer in the marketplace.
For many years, the basic objective of toy and game product packaging has been to provide boxes which, in some instances, are works of art having attractive, colorful and eye-catching depictions of the product, the various trademarks associated with the product, and other messages all intended to pique the interest of the potential consumer. One of the more interesting and somewhat recent trends in product packaging design exploited by practitioners in the toy and game arts has been the imparting of a functional aspect to the package. In accordance with this trend, packages have, in many instances, been produced which include a "try me" feature. This feature derives its name from the ability of the user to sample the operation of the device without breaking product package integrity. Such try-me packages are frequently found in toys having electrical or electronic operating capabilities. Still other functionally directed packages have been found in different games and toys in which the product package is actually used in the play activities.
In addition to developing product packages which meet the basic objective of attraction and colorful and interesting appearance as well as the functional uses such as try-me or the like, product package designers are constrained by competing limitations. For example, the overall size of the product package in comparison to the product size is subject to limitation under various "slack pack" regulations. These regulations prohibit the false packaging of a product in a container which is disproportionately larger than the product requires. Further limitations evolve through economic considerations. It is, of course, less costly to make a smaller package rather than a larger one. However, in terms of the packages ability to attract a purchaser, bigger is better. Thus, the objective of package designers is to properly balance these needs and limitations to provide the optimum product.
One of the most difficult types of product in terms of the dimensional considerations of the package is found in products which have play surfaces such as board games, scene games and the like. Most practitioners resolve this problem by either attempting to have the package unfold into a large sheet or include a folded board-type object. These approaches of course are limited in their commercial viability but often necessary due to the above limitations.
U.S. Pat. No. 1,682,5954 issued to Benjamin sets forth a CARTON having a six-sided package carton formed of a single precut and prefolded blank of material such as cardboard or the like. Various die-cut items are secured within the blank and are foldable to stand vertically upon the underlying surface to provide a background for the toy.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,542,870 issue to Westersund sets forth a FOLDING BOX DIORAMA TOY having a square base and for hingedly connected sidewalls secured thereto. Each sidewall further supports a triangular inwardly extending portion of the top surface. When the sides are folded upwardly to extend perpendicularly from the base, their respective triangles meet and together form the top side of the container.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,982,780 issued to Behrens sets forth a COMBINATION CONTAINER having a container formed of a single blank of material such as cardboard which is multiply cut and folded to provide a closed container or an extended planar play surface.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,332,093 issued to Littlepage sets forth a MAILBOX SHAPED DOLL AND ACCESSORY CARRIER AND BLANK THEREFOR having a planar blank which is configured to fold into a mailbox shape by providing a bendable extended length side used to form the upper surface of the mailbox.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,454,508 issued to Billen sets forth a ONEPIECE VEHICLE REPLICA CONTAINER having a planar blank of suitable material such as cardboard or the like which is shaped and visually decorated to provide a plurality of body parts such that the folding of the container to its closed position produces a model of a vehicle.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,458,512 issued to Todd sets forth a COMBINATION STORAGE CONTAINER AND EDUCATIONAL TOY having a primary container defining a plurality of slots in the outer surfaces thereof. A plurality of foldable elements define respective tabs which enable the elements to be secured to the outer surfaces of the container.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,586,659 issued to Trumbo sets forth a COMBINATION GIFT BOX AND GREETING CARD having a container which unfolds to provide a diorama with foreground and background objects.
U.S. Pat. No. 2,018,393 issued to Andrews sets forth a AMUSEMENT DEVICE having a foldable container defining lens openings and a film shuttle on opposite ends of the container. A film is threaded through the device to be viewed through the lens openings.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,140,317 issued to Ramney sets forth a CONTAINERIZED GREETING CARD AND GAME TOY constructed of cardboard, plastic or similar material and made up of several sections forming panels together with flaps foldable along folding lines into a flat container. The container opens to lie flat and provide a play surface.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,303,863 issued to Arasim sets forth a BEVERAGE CARTON WITH INTEGRAL COOLER BIN while British Patent 159,441 issued to Palmer, et al. sets forth a suitcase-like toy in which the interior of the suitcase supports a plurality of toy items such as a toy landscaping scene while the interior surface of the cover is pivotable to a vertical position and supports a cooperating scene related to and extending from the interior of the suitcase.
While the foregoing described prior art devices have, to some extent, improved the art and in some instances, enjoyed commercial success, there remains nonetheless a continuing need in the art for evermore improved, interesting, amusing and cost efficient packages for use in products such as games or toys. There remains a particular facet of this need in connection with the objective of providing a maximization of "play size" while concurrently providing an optimally sized package for storage, transport and other considerations.